Turkey, US agree on clearing Syrian regions of PKK

Turkey’s foreign minister on Friday said Turkey and the US agree that after the northern city of Manbij, other Syrian regions will be rid of PKK/YPG terrorists.

Speaking at Anadolu Agency’s Editors' Desk, Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu said: “There is a clear consensus [with the U.S.] on our roadmap that we will move on to other areas after Manbij [has been cleared of PKK/YPG terrorists].

The roadmap was announced last month after a meeting in Washington between Çavuşoğlu and U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo.

The deal focuses on the withdrawal of the PKK-affiliated YPG terror group from Manbij and stability in the region.

"The Kurds in Kobani need not worry about the roadmap, because the YPG is persecuting them. We will analyze the demographics and if the majority is Kurdish, then this will be reflected in the administration, but the YPG/PKK will not be a part of this," Çavuşoğlu said.

Speaking on the Turkish army patrols in the northern Syrian city of Manbij, Çavuşoğlu said the YPG/PKK’s withdrawal from patrol areas in Manbij does not mean they have completely withdrawn.

On Wednesday, the Turkish military completed its ninth round of patrols in Manbij as part of a deal with the U.S. to rid the area of the terror group YPG/PKK.

On its Twitter account, the Turkish General Staff said that both countries' forces conducted separate coordinated patrols in the area between Manbij and the area previously cleared by Turkey’s Operation Euphrates Shield.

The first patrols by Turkish and U.S. troops in the region began on June 18.

In its more than 30-year terror campaign against Turkey, the PKK has taken some 40,000 lives, including those of women and children. The YPG/PKK is its Syrian branch.

Çavuşoğlu also stated Turkey’s resolve to continue counterterrorism operations in northern Iraq.

“We will do what is necessary for the terrorist PKK to be cleared from Iraqi territories,” he said.

The PKK is listed as a terrorist organization by Turkey as well as the U.S. and the EU. In its terror campaign against Turkey, which has lasted for more than three decades, over 40,000 people have been killed, including women and children.

About how bilateral ties might get affected if the U.S. imposes sanctions on Turkey due to its S-400 purchase, the foreign minister said: "The U.S. administration will make the decision. The administration does not want to harm relations with Turkey.

"Especially, [Donald] Trump himself does not want to harm relations with Turkey. He, in real terms, respects our Mr. President.”

Under an accelerated timetable for the S-400 deal, Russia's first deliveries of the advanced anti-aircraft missile system to Turkey are due in late 2019 or early 2020.

The S-400 is Russia's most advanced long-range anti-aircraft missile system with a capacity of carrying three types of missiles capable of destroying targets including ballistic and cruise missiles.

The system can track and engage up to 300 targets at a time and has an altitude ceiling of 27 kilometers (17 miles).

About Turkish-Israeli relations, Çavuşoğlu said Israel was maintaining an aggressive attitude towards Turkey.

“Israeli should cease its wrong policies and merciless cruelty, which is incompatible with humanity, in order to normalize our relations with Israel in real terms,” Çavuşoğlu said.

On Turkish national Ebru Özkan’s arrest in Tel Aviv, Çavuşoğlu said: “They [Israel] have been taking steps to deter our citizens from visiting Jerusalem. We will respond to this.”

An Israeli military court on Tuesday extended the detention of Özkan, who had been under arrest since June 11 for alleged links with terrorist groups, the lawyer said.

On U.S. withdrawal from Iran nuclear deal, Çavuşoğlu said: “We don’t find the U.S. decisions on sanctions on Iran right.”

In May, Trump withdrew the U.S. from the nuclear deal, which was signed in 2015 between Iran and the P5 1 group of nations (the five permanent members of the UN Security Council plus Germany). The deal placed restrictions on Iran’s nuclear program in exchange for billions of dollars in sanctions relief.

He said Iran should not be forced into a corner since it would be "dangerous and risky”.

Çavuşoğlu added the U.S. decision against Iran had been taken upon Israeli demand and had no justification.

Also, on Austria’s taking over of the rotating presidency of the Council of the European Union from Bulgaria on July 1, the foreign minister said: “We also do not expect Austria to take a radical decision.”

Austria assumed the presidency for the third time after its terms in 1998 and 2006.

About the fight against Fetullah Terrorist Organization (FETÖ), Çavuşoğlu said: “We will see how seriously they [U.S.] will take it after everything is put on the table. The U.S. should not lose its ally like Turkey.”

Urging the U.S. to give up its “wrong policies” against Ankara, he urged the Washington administration to fulfill Turkey’s demands against FETÖ.

According to the Turkish government, FETÖ and its U.S.-based leader Fetullah Gulen orchestrated the defeated coup of July 15, 2016, which left 251 people martyred and nearly 2,200 injured.

Ankara also accuses FETÖ of being behind a long-running campaign to overthrow the state through the infiltration of Turkish institutions, particularly the military, police and judiciary.